Lexington police make arrest in murder case

LEXINGTON, Ky. (WKYT) - Lexington make an arrest in the first murder investigation of 2013.

Early Wednesday morning police arrested 18-year-old Quante Johnson, and charged him with murder and tampering with physical evidence. Police say he shot and killed 49-year-old Joe Randolph on Simpson Avenue on January 5Th. The shooting was the first murder investigation of the year for Lexington police.

Lexington detectives say they have worked day and night to make an arrest in this case and they finally found the pieces they were looking for to put Johnson in jail. Police say tips from the public were the tipping point that helped them make an arrest in the case.

Police have not yet released any possible motive in the case and they're also not sharing the relationship between the victim and the suspected shooter. Police say they are not looking for any additional suspects, but say that just because an arrest has been made, doesn't mean the investigation is closed.

Anna Pineda, was a tenant of Joe Randolph and says she is relieved to learn someone is in jail for his murder, "It's like you never know, whoever killed him could come over again and try to kill someone for no reason because like I said, Joe was a good guy. There was no reason to kill him."

Pineda is still in disbelief why someone would want to shoot her landlord, "Whenever we needed something, he would just come over here. Or whenever we couldn't be able to pay the rent, he'd be like hold on and he would just wait for us."

Fayette County Judge Julie Goodman entered Johnson into a not guilty plea due to the seriousness of the crime. He is scheduled to appear in court for a preliminary hearing on January 23.

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